Mary and I have become interested in the field of creative aging because it sheds a positive light on the elder years. We have learned that creative activity is “chocolate for the brain” that stimulates continued brain development as we age and it also contributes to general health and well-being at a time when it is particularly important. The potential for creative performance in the aging brain may also be enhanced by more bilateral cooperation of the cerebral hemispheres.

We have also learned that writing, as a creative pursuit, can be developed through the recording of contemporary personal experiences so they are not forgotten and can be passed on to the next generation in the form of stories. Writing has also been used as a strategy for “mining” memory for past events no longer in our conscious awareness and creating stories from them.

Story telling is a responsibility of elders in other cultures and allows for a bridging of family history from one generation to the next. Unfortunately, that is not often the case in our  culture. The stories die with elders or erode from memory for lack of telling because there is no clear bridging tradition. Within the field of creative aging, storytelling is now encouraged for that reason. It also is a creative activity with a rich source of content as we “harvest” a lifetime of experience.

As we hear and tell more stories, our natural curiosity is evoked, fueling more stories, thus developing story telling as a family cultural tradition. We notice that our granddaughters have become increasingly interested in our past as we begin to tell them about it. One of them once asked if schools had been invented when we were growing up.

She was surprised to learn that, in fact, they had been. How do you think we learned to read and write, we might have asked? Limited knowledge and misinformation of our family history is the current version of the 1960s “generation gap”. We should not leave younger generations uninformed and misinformed if we can help it.

The notion of “family” is extended to past generations and projected to future generations through the continuity of stories. Stories are a form of intergenerational communication that fills the generation gap.

Each generation has the responsibility to build upon the family library of stories as a new branch on the family tree. We are each a book of stories in that library. Knowledge of our family history provides us with a sense of being a part of a large and complex whole, formed by nature and nurture, providing insight into who we are and why we are that way.  

We attended a “living book” event at our public library not long ago. We were able to “check out” people who sat with us and told us about their lives, in this case, their journey as immigrants coming to Canada. The experience provided us with insights about them as people and how they struggled to leave difficult circumstances in their country of origin and adjust to a new culture.

We were instructed to return the “book” in the same condition we found it as with any book in a library. Seeing ourselves and others in our families as “living books” is a shift in perspective fostering curiosity and a motivation to “check out” each other from time to time. From elders to children, we all have something interesting to say.   

Stories take time to tell and require the full attention of the listener. We are challenged in developing a story telling tradition by living in hectic culture that defaults to what is next on the to-do list. Time and attention are in short supply when one foot is already out the door. A social context is necessary where we take the time to sit, talk and listen together.

Conversations over meals often lead to the sharing of stories. Food is a significant part of the family cultural tradition. We all could tell a story about our family food history. Families who have become too busy to share this time have denied themselves an important tradition for fostering family togetherness and well-being.

Mealtime combines our basic biological need for regular nutrition with our innate drive to be with others as social beings. We can pass the time pleasantly in consumption and good company, refreshing ourselves before returning to our demanding daily routines.

As a person who enjoys writing personal essays as a creative activity, I challenge myself to revive some of my own memories through writing and “harvest” them into stories that may be of interest to family members. And it is always good to have a story or two available to contribute to dinner and other conversations.

Holding an attitude of, “I think that might make for a good story” can shed a different light on what we experience. A story is in the weaving of various related events into the colorful fabric of a narrative holding the interest of a listener or reader. Viewing past events through the lens of intervening life experience affords an opportunity to see the humor in them not so obvious at the time. Stories should have a sense of humor. This combination of elements is, I think, significant in the art of the story.